Singularities in asymptotically anti-de Sitter spacetimes

Abstract

We consider singularity theorems in asymptotically anti-de Sitter (AdS) spacetimes. In the first part, we discuss the global methods used to show geodesic incompleteness and see that when the conditions imposed in Hawking and Penrose's singularity theorem are satisfied, a singularity must appear in asymptotically AdS spacetime. The recent observations of turbulent instability of asymptotically AdS spacetimes indicate that AdS spacetimes are generically singular even if a closed trapped surface, which is one of the main conditions of the Hawking and Penrose theorem, does not exist in the initial hypersurface. This may lead one to expect to obtain a singularity theorem without imposing the existence of a trapped set in asymptotically AdS spacetimes. This, however, does not appear to be the case. We consider, within the use of global methods, two such attempts and discuss difficulties in eliminating conditions concerning a trapped set from singularity theorems in asymptotically AdS spacetimes. Then in the second part, we restrict our attention to the specific case of spherically symmetric, perfect fluid systems in asymptotically AdS spacetime, and show that under a certain condition concerning dynamics of the fluid, a closed trapped surface must form, and as a combined result with Hawking and Penrose's theorem, that such a spacetime must be singular.